Mahler in Amsterdam - Ten symphonies in Amsterdam for the first time in 30 years

With its concentric canals and 17th-century mansions, Amsterdam is one of the loveliest capitals in the world. There is a morning walk to see some of the loveliest stretches of canalside houses, finishing with a tour of the Royal Palace, formerly the very grand town hall, decorated by the leading painters of the 17th century (subject to closure for royal functions). Evening concert with the Budapest Festival Orchestra, Netherlands Radio Choir, Iván Fischer (conductor), Christiane Karg (soprano), Anna Lucia Richter (mezzo-soprano): Mahler, Symphony No.2 ‘Resurrection’.

Visit the Van Gogh Museum, which houses the largest collection (over 200) of the artist’s works, and the nearby Stedelijk Museum of modern and contemporary art. Evening concert with the NHK Symphony Orchestra, Women of the National Radio Choir, National Children’s Choir, Fabio Luisi (conductor), Olesya Petrova (mezzo-soprano): Mahler, Symphony No.3.

Our visit with an art historian to the brilliantly refurbished Rijksmuseum concentrates on the major works in its unrivalled collection of Golden Age paintings, Rembrandt’s Night Watch and four Vermeers among them. Evening concert with the NHK Symphony Orchestra, Fabio Luisi (conductor), Ying Fang (soprano), Matthias Goerne (baritone): Mahler, songs from ‘Des Knaben Wunderhorn’; Symphony No.4.

The day is free apart from a lecture on the evening’s performance. Evening concert with the Budapest Festival Orchestra, Iván Fischer (conductor), Anna Lucia Richter (mezzo-soprano): Mahler, ‘Kindertotenlieder’; Symphony No.5.

Day trip to Den Haag (The Hague), seat of the court and parliament. The Mauritshuis contains a superb collection of Dutch 17th-century paintings, while the Gemeentemuseum displays the 19th-century Hague School, the realist milieu from which Van Gogh emerged, and works by the pioneer abstractionist Mondriaan. Visit also the Mesdag Panorama. Evening concert with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Jaap van Zweden (conductor): Mahler, Symphony No.6.

Morning visits of the Willet-Holthuysen Museum, a fully-furnished 17th-century canalside merchant’s house, and the Museum Van Loon, a private residence built in 1672. Evening concert with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Jaap van Zweden (conductor): Mahler, Symphony No.7.

he day is free apart from a lecture on the evening’s performance. Evening concert with the Concertgebouw Orchestra, National Radio Choir, Laurens Symfonisch, Le Chœur de l’Orchestre de Paris, National Children’s Choir, Klaus Mäkelä (conductor), Golda Schultz (soprano), Miriam Kutrowatz (soprano), Jennifer Johnston (alto), Okka von der Damerau (alto), Giorgio Berrugi (tenor), Baritone: Michael Nagy (baritone), Tareq Nazmi (bass): Mahler, Symphony No.8 ‘Symphony of a Thousand’.

Excursion to Haarlem, the chief artistic centre in the northern Netherlands in the 16th century and home to the first of the great masters of the Golden Age, Frans Hals, whose finest works are in the museum. Evening concert with the Berlin Philharmonic, Kirill Petrenko (conductor): Mahler, Symphony No.9.

Visits to the magnificent 17th-century Portuguese Synagogue and to Rembrandt’s House, recently and excellently refurbished. Evening lecture and dinner. Final concert with the Berlin Philharmonic, Daniel Barenboim (conductor): Mahler, Adagio from Symphony No.10; ‘Das Lied von der Erde’.

Free morning, then take the Eurostar to London St Pancras, arriving c. 5.45pm.

Please note that train times are subject to change. Direct trains from Amsterdam to London are halted for six months from autumn 2024 to spring 2025. Works are due to be completed before May, but we may need to change trains in Brussels if the direct service does not resume in time.